Thursday, April 9, 2015

Jeremy Renner channels Houdini

The 2013 film The Immigrant is released this week on DVD and Blu-Ray. The film is set in 1921 New York and features Jeremy Renner as Emil Orlando, a Houdini-like magician and escape artist who competes with Bruno Weiss (Joaquin Phoenix) for the affections of Ewa Cybulski (Marion Cotillard).

I haven't seen the film, but based on the photo of Renner above, it looks like something to check out, if just for the magic and production design. Although you'll notice Renner is sporting a full straitjacket fail.

Did anyone see a movie from the 80s called 'The Moderns'? It had a character who was "trained by Houdini in escapology" or something like that. It was also set in the 1920s. On the straitjacket fail: i think young people today don't respect the whole idea of straitjacket escapes because most of them have never seen a person in a real straitjacket, they've only seen those silly jackets sold at magic shops -which don't look at all intimidating- hence don't grasp what a challenge it would be to escape from an actual jacket.

Indeed. I think it's our duty to always point it out. Maybe we can embarrass people into stopping. Certainly the magic consultant on this film should not have allowed this. Probably didn't know better.

First thing that entered my mind... here we go again with the Straitjacket fail. Yes let's keep pointing this out until they learn how to fasten it on correctly!I am an escape artist and have performed the straitjacket escape fastened on correctly several times so I feel that I have the right to make fun of these cheaters!